Rehabilytec: Adaptive Video Games with Natural Interfaces for Children’s Motor Neuro-Rehabilitation

Abstract

The article reports on the first phase of the Rehabilytec project developed in collaboration with CRIT Michoacán, México. The central purpose of the project is to develop adaptive video games that, in addition to facilitating the physical rehabilitation of children, offer an entertainment experience that allows them to temporarily distance themselves from the medical environment, which is often related to therapies involving pain. The video games developed allow monitoring of upper body movements, which are detected by advanced sensors integrated into the Orbbec Astra camera. These sensors accurately record the patient's range of joint movement, allowing the system to automatically adjust the video game parameters based on the degree of mobility detected, thus optimizing the interaction and the rehabilitation process. The system includes a web platform for therapists, where they can configure and customize the video games for each patient, as well as track their progress through graphs and statistics. The Game- Scrum methodology and a programming environment with Unity and C# were used in the development of the video games. This article shows that the implementation of serious video games can contribute significantly to physical rehabilitation therapies, being well received both by therapists, who can personalize them and track the track patients progress, and by children, who do their therapies with greater motivation.